Prominent Nigerian professor, Pius Adesanmi, and former United Nations and African Union Deputy Joint Special Representative in Darfur, Sudan, Ambassador Abiodun Bashua of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs were among the 157 persons on board an Ethiopian Airlines plane which crashed on Sunday.
Adesanmi, who was based in Canada was teaching at the Carlton University in Canada.
He was a dual citizen of Nigeria and Canada.
Ethiopian Airlines Chief Executive Officer (CEO) Tewolde Gebremariam told reporters that among the passengers were seven Britons, seven French, eight Italians and 18 Canadians.
Also on board were 32 Kenyans, nine Ethiopians, eight Americans and eight Chinese.
The nationalities of the other passengers were yet-to-be disclosed as at the time of filing this report.
President Muhammadu Buhari has expressed profound shock at the crash on behalf of the government and the people of Nigeria, extending his condolences to the Ethiopian Prime Minister, Abiy Ahmed, the people of Ethiopia, Kenya, Canada, China and all other nations who lost citizens to the disaster.
The President also commiserated with the families of the victims and prayed God Almighty to grant the souls of the departed eternal rest.
Reacting to the accident in Daura, Katsina State, the President said: “Such large scale loss of human lives in a single incident is shocking beyond words. I am profoundly touched by this devastating report of air accident involving one of the world’s most successful and efficient airlines, given its remarkable safety record. This couldn’t have come at a worse time for Ethiopian Airlines.”
President Buhari, in a statement by the Senior Special Assistant on Media & Publicity, Garba Shehu, said: ”Like every other African leader, I am proud of the fact that Ethiopian Airlines represents one of Africa’s success stories.”
The President hoped that the tragic accident will not have a negative effect on Ethiopian Airlines’ passion for excellence.
There were 147 passengers and eight crew members on board the ill-fated Addis Ababa-Kenya bound flight.
Officials were said to have retrieved the wreckage of the plane and confirmed the deaths.
Meanwhile, It was the second crash in five months involving a 737 Max 8, the newest version of the plane.
Comparisons are being drawn with a Lion Air accident last October where the plane lost altitude soon after takeoff.
However, experts warn it is too early to say what caused the Ethiopian Airlines disaster.
Ethiopian Airlines says the plane, flight ET302, crashed at 08:44 local time (05:44 GMT), just six minutes after it left Addis Ababa. The aircraft, bound for Nairobi, came down near the town of Bishoftu, 60km (37 miles) south-east of the capital.
The pilot had reported difficulties and had asked to return to Addis Ababa, the airline said.
“At this stage, we cannot rule out anything,” Ethiopian Airlines CEO Tewolde Gebremariam told reporters at Bole International Airport in the capital.
Visibility was said to be good but air traffic monitor Flightradar24 reported that the plane’s “vertical speed was unstable after take-off”.
The pilot was named as Senior Captain Yared Getachew who had a “commendable performance” with more than 8,000 hours in the air, the airline said.
Passengers from more than 30 countries were on board the flight, including 32 Kenyans, 18 Canadians, and seven Britons.
At least 19 victims were affiliated with the United Nations, according a UN official.
Slovak MP Anton Hrnko also confirmed via Facebook that his wife and two children were on the plane.
In response to the accident, Ethiopia has declared Monday a national day of mourning
